Liang Jing

Liang Jing (25 March 941-) was King of Liang Liao from 10 June 947, succeeding Liang Yan. He was the second son of Liang Yong, born by his concubine Chaogui, but, with the help of his regent Wang Anshi, Liang Jing defeated his brother Liang Yan in a four-year civil war and reunited Liang Liao under his rule. He was known to be a cruel and warlike king who started his reign by overthrowing his brother and executing and castrating opponents, and he also expanded the empire into Central Asia, increasing the Liao's landholdings.

Biography
Liang Jing was born in 941, the son of Liang Yong and his concubine Chaogui. He was under two years old when his father died a maimed cripple due to wounds received while putting down a major rebellion against his rule, and the dynasty was thrown into chaos. The two infant sons vied for control of the empire, with Liang Jing inheriting the vast majority of the empire as "Khan of Mongolia" and Liang Yan inheriting a few disconnected border regions in the west and south as "King of Liao". Liang Jing was immediately betrothed to Cao Wanyi with the goal of uniting two noble clans in the country together. Liang Jing sought to reunite his father's realms, so he was forced to declare war on his own brother and seize his lands, ultimately forcing his brother to surrender on 10 June 947. He then assumed both titles, and he ultimately adopted "King of Liao" as his primary title. Liang Jing then inherited his father's desire to conquer Central Asia, starting with a war against Inek II of Altay on 31 July 947. On 8 July 948, Inek was forced to surrender Belukha to Liao, Liang Jing's first conquest.

Liang Jing marked himself as a cruel ruler; his own mother and even his half-sister Liang Miao ended up in his prison after being captured from the Liao court, but he freed his mother and brought her to his court, while he had his half-sister held under house arrest until she reached majority age. Liang Jing also attempted to curb the power of the Cao clan by having the young Cao Yi castrated and having his uncle Cao Yuanzhong and his wife Temulun executed, angering his betrothed Cao Wanyi, whom he had decided to marry shortly before the war. With the help of his regent Wang Anshi (whom he ennobled), Liang Jing succeeded in conquering large parts of Central Asia, and he came of age in 957. Upon coming of age, he cancelled his engagement to Cao Wanyi, who had grown up to be disfigured and a lesbian.